Every week at PopCrush, we’re putting the spotlight on one up-and-coming act you need to know about. Why? So you can get on board early before everyone else and their mother jumps on the bandwagon…and so you can be that one friend in the group who’s always like, “Um, actually, I prefer their earlier work.”

If you need a respite from summertime club-thumping and can't afford a decent A/C unit, Phoebe Ryan's got the road map to clemency — and she'll happily point you in the right direction.

The Texas native, who's got roots writing with Bea Miller and Skizzy Mars, quietly demanded attention in January with a dreamy, understated mashup of R. Kelly's "Ignition" and Miguel's "Do You" that's racked up half a million plays on SoundCloud and more than a million on Spotify.

In the months since, her ethereal one-woman show—which centers on lighter-than-air humming that asserts without routing—has taken steps toward the mainstream with tracks like "Mine," an ode to finding treasure in trash, and "Dead," which chronicles a cynic's struggle to embrace a bit of good fortune.

"Cause lately life is like a dream / It's messing with my head / I must be dead," Ryan laments in the latter track, which would be a deserved addition to any revered mumblecore flick.

Today, Ryan, who's a crossbreed between Tove Lo and the light, ghostly Ellie Goulding, releases her debut EP, Mine, which includes the three aforementioned records and the noteworthy "Homie," a thinly veiled plea to stay in the friend zone, lest things get messy.

"I just wanna be your homie / Call you up when I get lonely / At least until you get to know me," she croons in equally woeful and hopeful tones. Romantic but skeptical; rosy but totally incredulous, Ryan makes a business of inviting you over, but demanding that you jump through flaming hoops before you get inside.

Where Top 40 aims to double your heartbeat, Ryan provides lullabies that may not ease you to sleep, but they will abate the day's white noise. Be sure to get your hands on Mine, now available on iTunes.

Who would you like to see featured in PopCrush Presents next? Tweet us at @popcrush with your recommendations using #PopCrushPresents!

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